


find a home in me

by chocolatechip



Series: the avengers as a family fics that you (that's right, you) deserve [1]
Category: Marvel, Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: 2012 avengers fic era type fic, Aftermath of Torture, Avengers Family, Deaf Clint Barton, Domestic Avengers, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Odin (Marvel)'s A+ Parenting, Team Bonding, Team as Family, well i mean. i hope im funny
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:14:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26958661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chocolatechip/pseuds/chocolatechip
Summary: Tony thought it was a bad idea when Pepper mentioned to him that hey, it would be very convenient if all of the Avengers lived in one place. He knew it was a bad idea when he set up rooms and created a living space, rearranging existing furniture and making the kitchen more accessible for everyone, food items suited to each person’s needs.Or: the marvel fic we all need and deserve
Relationships: Bruce Banner/Thor, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers/Sam Wilson, James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark, Loki & Avengers Team, Pepper Potts/Natasha Romanov
Series: the avengers as a family fics that you (that's right, you) deserve [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2056761
Comments: 6
Kudos: 27





	find a home in me

**Author's Note:**

> hey!! before yall read, i just want to let you know some things.
> 
> the characters are a mix of their movie, comic, and cartoon selves. i have mix n’ matched what i like about each canon and put it together in this melting pot of trash. a lot of shit is gonna happen. soooo many characters will appear. it may take a long time to get to the end, but i hope you stick around :)
> 
> (there are not very many tags right now bc i want to keep certain things that are going to happen secret ;) nothing bad don’t worry. just specific characters and plot points, but i will put content warnings on chapters that need them and add tags when necessary. if a chapter needs a warning and it doesn't have one, please let me know and i will add it)
> 
> EDIT 12/13/20: i've decided to change some things, so this will now be a series and not one work. i think it will be a lot less confusing like that lol. what i had written in the previous paragraph is unnecessary now. all of the tags on this fic are the ones that will be used, unless something happens while i am writing that i did not plan. although, i will still put content warnings on chapters. i'm so sorry to everyone who wanted me to update, i lost motivation for a while. i should have written it all already but, yknow, i didn't. from now on i will hopefully have a few chapters written in advance. so if everything goes according to plan, then the next chapters will be up soon!! thanks for being patient yall, ily <3

Tony thought it was a bad idea when Pepper mentioned to him that  _ hey, it would be very convenient if all of the Avengers lived in one place _ . He knew it was a bad idea when he set up rooms and created a living space, rearranging existing furniture and making the kitchen more accessible for everyone, food items suited to each person’s needs.

Tony knew it was a bad idea to have a bunch of people he barely knew live with him.

They had one adventure together (well, it was hardly an “adventure”; it was more of a “save the world from aliens” kind of thing). They never got to know one another. They had shawarma. That was it.

He knew Steve was America’s Golden Boy. He knew his father loved Steve more than his own son. He knew “Natalie Rushman”. He didn’t know Natasha. He knew Thor was a big scary guy with a hammer. He knew Clint was kinda-sorta possessed (is that the right word?) by Loki. He knew Bruce had some anger issues.

That was it.

He sent out emails, a few phone calls, etc., inviting the other five to the tower. Clint agreed easily, on the terms that he could bring his dog. Steve accepted too, as he didn’t have much tying him to his apartment anyway. Natasha had to think about it, but she eventually agreed. Thor agreed, but for him it would be an on-again off-again thing. He had Asgard, after all. Bruce was concerned about hulking out, but Tony assured him that it would be fine.

But why stop there? Tony invited Rhodey and Happy too (both pretty much already lived there, so it wouldn’t be too much of a change). They accepted the invite.

Two weeks until they arrived.

For a week, Tony did nothing but tinker. It was how he calmed his nerves. And right now, he was very nervous. What if they ended up hating each other? They hardly know each other anyway. What if it’s cold and awkward?

Tony sighed and closed his eyes. How long had it been since he slept? Two days?

He leaned back and dozed off.

“Sir, Steve Rogers is requesting access to the tower,” Jarvis said, jolting Tony awake.

Tony swore and tried to settle his breathing. He swallowed and came to his senses, “Um, what?”

“He wants to come in, sir,” Jarvis said.

“What, why? They aren’t scheduled to arrive until next week,” Tony got up and left the lab.

“I don’t know sir, but he has luggage with him,” Jarvis said.

“What the fuck…” Tony muttered under his breath, “Let him in, I guess. Lead him to the floor with his room.”

Tony sat in the elevator as it went down, standing once it stopped. When the doors slid open, Tony was met with the sight of Steve Rogers carrying a suitcase and looking extremely confused. His face brightened when he saw Tony.

“Hey! Uh, thank you for letting me live here. It’s really big,” Rogers smiled, almost nervously.

“Oh yeah, no problem,” Tony said, “But, uh, you’re not supposed to be here until next week.”

Rogers smiled awkwardly again, “Well, I thought I could get settled in faster and help you set up for the others? If it’s no trouble, of course.”

Damn his puppy eyes.

True to his word, Rogers did help set up, although most of it was already done. He helped with what he could. And it wasn’t horrible to have someone around while Tony wasted away in his lab—er, the garage.

The two of them talked and really got to know each other. Tony wasn’t too keen on lowering his walls, but he learned more about Steve and he told Steve what he could about himself without bringing up horrible memories.

Eventually, it was moving day.

Romanoff and Barton arrived first. From what Tony had observed, they were pretty much inseparable, which is why he put their rooms right next to each other.

They thanked him and went into their rooms to put their stuff away.

Coincidentally, Thor and Banner also arrived together, though several hours after Barton and Romanoff. Tony bit his cheek to stop himself from laughing at Banner’s expression when the elevator opened. He looked like a deer in the headlights from being in an elevator with Thor.

They both went into their rooms to put everything away. Thor brought a lot less than everyone else, as this was a much more temporary living space for him.

A few hours later, as everyone was getting settled in, Tony went down to his garage-slash-lab to review the floor plan of the living spaces.

Okay, Barton, Romanoff, and Banner were on the right side of the hallway. Thor and Rogers were on the left, with an empty room next to Thor’s. At the end of the hallway was a communal bathroom (even though each room had a bathroom, complete with a shower and a tub). The rest of the floor was the kitchen and the living room.

Tony, Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy’s rooms were on the floor above them and extra rooms were on the floor below them. And everyone used the living room and the kitchen. The floor below the extra rooms was a large gym, spanning the length of the whole floor.

“Sir, the team is looking for you. Shall I tell them where you are?” Jarvis said.

“Nah,” Tony said, “I’ll just come to them. Are they still on their floor?”

“Yes,” Jarvis replied.

Tony entered their floor a few minutes later from the elevator. He heard banging sounds from the kitchen and rushed over.

Barton was searching through the lower cabinets under the counter. On the counter was a pot and various ingredients.

“What is he doing?” Tony sighed.

“I think he’s making spaghetti. I’m not sure. About thirty minutes ago he ran in here screaming about pasta,” Romanoff said.

Tony jumped and cursed under his breath. Where did she come from?? He didn’t hear here come up to him at all.

“Oh,” he said, “...So he’s been in the cabinets for thirty minutes?”

“Yup,” Romanoff folded her arms over her chest.

Tony realized that they were all wearing some form of comfortable clothing, and he stuck out like a sore thumb in his suit (not his Iron Man suit, just a regular suit).

“Why don’t you put something else on?” Romanoff eyed him, and Tony swore she could read minds.

Tony nodded and left in the elevator for his room. He took off his suit and slipped on a long sleeved shirt and sweatpants. When he returned, the kitchen was even worse.

Barton was stirring noodles in a pot. That seemed innocent enough. But somehow the walls, counter, and floor were covered in red… stuff.

“I—how— Okay,” Tony just. Didn’t look at it.

“Oh hey, Stark! Um, I was making pasta sauce, but it kind of exploded? I was gonna clean it up but I didn’t want the spaghetti to burn so I’m finishing that first,” Barton laughed sheepishly.

“I could clean it up while you do the spaghetti,” Tony offered.

“No!” Barton said, his knuckles turning white on the wooden spoon, “Um, I mean, it’s my mess and my responsibility so I’ll clean it up.”

“Oh, uh, okay,” Tony said awkwardly.

“Don’t worry, he wouldn’t let the rest of us clean it up either,” Romanoff said from the couch. Rogers was sitting with her on the other side.

Tony nodded and went to sit with them but stopped, thinking he wouldn’t be welcome. So he stood off to the side, sort of like Banner was doing.

Well. This was awkward.

Everything was silent save for Romanoff tapping on the glass side table and Barton clattering in the kitchen.

Tony fidgeted with his fingers behind his back. This was not going well so far. No one was saying anything. Why wasn’t anyone talking? This was supposed to be a good thing. The team was supposed to bond. But. It seemed like they were all just ignoring each other.

“Oh wow,” Pepper said, stepping out of the elevator. She was dressed in a casual yet somehow still professional outfit, “It’s like a funeral in here.”

“Hey Pep, what’s up?” Tony asked, grateful for a distraction.

She looked around for a moment, then back at Tony, “Where is Barton’s dog? Actually, where’s Barton?”

“Clint is in the kitchen and he will pick his dog up tomorrow,” Romanoff answered, “His neighbor at his old apartment is watching the dog.”

Pepper nodded and sat in one of the armchairs. Thor was in the one next to her.

Tony wanted to scream when everything went silent again. It was just… so awkward.

“Okay, dinner is served!” Barton said, carrying plates to the table, “I found pasta sauce - I uh, also cleaned up - and parmesan cheese, so if you want that it’s on the table.”

“Thanks, Clint,” Romanoff said, followed by a chorus of ‘Thanks, Barton’ from everyone else.

“No problem. It was the least I could do,” Barton said.

The team (and Pepper) ate silently. It was easy to talk while they were defending New York from aliens, but dinner? Hell no. That was  _ awkward. _

“This pasta is worthy of the gods!” Thor said. Somehow, his plate was clean. Tony shoved the questions ( _ How did you eat it that fast? Do Asgardians have a super god-like metabolism?) _ out of his mind and shoved the pasta in his mouth.

Barton blinked, “Uh, thanks. There’s more in the pot if you want it.”

Thor got up to fill his plate again. Everyone else was still working on their first plate. The spaghetti was pretty good. He wondered if Barton liked to cook.

Dinner passed without any problems. Tony was slightly surprised that no one broke anything. After dinner, Barton did the dishes (he refused help from anyone). And everyone else retreated to their rooms. Tony and Pepper sat in the living room. Tony looked out the window, wishing not for the first or last time that the city didn’t have so much light pollution.

“How did moving in go?” Pepper asked. She leaned on Tony and tucked her legs under a blanket. Tony wrapped an arm around her. 

“Pretty awkward,” Tony said, “You saw how dinner was.”

Pepper chuckled, “You guys will bond, don’t worry. Of course it’s going to be awkward at first.”

Tony smiled, “Thanks, Pep.”

“So when are you gonna get your shit together and go out with Rhodey?”

Tony choked. Coughed. Stared at her with wide eyes.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, looking away.

“Yes you do,” Pepper said, “I know you two have a  _ thing _ . He called me when he was drunk and told me everything. So did you, actually. When will you give him an answer?”

Tony’s heart hammered. Three years ago, Rhodey told Tony that he was in love with him. Tony ran away. Rhodey called him and told him to think about it, no pressure. Tony said he would. And they never talked about it again. Maybe they kissed a few times, but that’s what friends were for, right?

Yeah. That was a shitty thing to do. Tony knew that.

“Hey, hey,” Pepper said softly. “It’s fine. You guys are fine. You’re fine.”

“It’s not fine,” Tony said, “I love him too. I have since college. And I fucking… just acted like an asshole. I  _ am  _ an asshole.”

“You should tell him,” Pepper said.

The kitchen light turned off and Barton exited.

“Sorry,” he said, “Didn’t mean to overhear. Not sure who Rhodey is, but it sounds like Pepper is right and you guys should get your shit together. G’night.” Barton left quickly for his room.

Tony swallowed and rested his head on the back of the couch. How could he forget that Barton was in the kitchen?

“I should turn in too,” Pepper said, “Rhodey and Happy are coming tomorrow. You should talk to him then. Also, please go to sleep.”

Tony thanked her and said goodnight. He stared at the off TV when she left. He got up and headed down for his lab. What Pepper didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.

**Author's Note:**

> i've had this fic living rent free in my head since infinity war came out. i've been writing notes and scenes for a long time now, but i am finally getting serious about writing it. i have so much planned and i'm very excited to share it with you all.
> 
> if you notice a difference between this and my other works, it's because i fixed the spacing!! :)
> 
> comments and kudos are always appreciated wink wink


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